FOR 17 cancer survivor children with the youngest of them being just eight years, it was not only an opportunity to see Kings XI Punjab face Sunrisers Hyderabad in an IPL match at Mohali, but also a chance to spend some time with Indian cricketer and himself a cancer survivor, Yuvraj Singh. The youngsters, who had undergone treatment at the Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Hospital, Delhi, had come to watch the match through an association with Yuvraj’s cancer foundation YouWeCan.

“I always wanted to watch Yuvraj bat in stadium and it was a dream come true for me today. Although my favourite cricketer is Suresh Raina, as a cancer survivor and cricketer, Yuvraj sir has always inspired me. I was diagnosed with cancer when I was one-and-a-half-years-old and it was fourth stage cancer. After undergoing treatment which also included chemotherapy and medication, I recovered in 2012,’’ said eight-year-old Delhi resident Vedant Vidhani, who is a student of Salwan Public School, Delhi.

For blood cancer survivor 19-year-old Bhushan Verma, the match also meant seeing Australian cricketer David Warner in action apart from getting a chance to interact with Yuvraj and ask the Punjab cricketer some questions. Verma, who is a student of Ganga Technical Campus in Delhi, was diagnosed with cancer in 2012. The youngster, who has also seen cricket matches in Delhi, was impressed with Punjab cricketer Sandeep Sharma and Haryana lad Deepak Hooda.

“We have seen matches in Delhi too but seeing the match with other cancer survivors and their parents was something which I will cherish. We also presented Yuvraj with a poster and Yuvraj sir appreciated it a lot. We also asked Yuvraj about him hitting six sixes and also about his recent engagement. He also shared how he fought with cancer,” said Verma who is pursuing a diploma in engineering.

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Yuvraj met the youngsters along with his mother Shabnam Singh and shared his experience with cancer. “When I got to know about my cancer, I could not believe it. But living with the disease made me believe in myself. Later, I also launched my cancer foundation YouWeCan and we are supporting cancer survivors through it,” said the cricketer, who played a knock of 42 runs in the match.